Campaign Staff Hiring 101 - National Democratic Training Committee

Campaign Staff Hiring 101

By Nancy Leeds
60 min
Management & Leadership

What You’ll Learn

  • How to prioritize and fill a campaign’s foundational staff roles
  • Where to look for qualified and diverse staff talent
  • How to design an efficient and equitable campaign staff hiring process
  • How to evaluate applicants for staff roles

Why This is Important

Many campaigns at the county and municipal level work with a committed team of volunteers out of necessity, but adding paid professionals to a campaign is a smart move, if the budget permits. This course introduces the basics of political campaign staff hiring, from recruitment to onboarding. You’ll also learn actionable ways to make the campaign’s hiring practices more equitable, easier to navigate, and all-around more efficient. Even if your team is made up exclusively of volunteers, knowing how roles and responsibilities are best delegated on a campaign will be helpful.

Key Resources

  • Campaign Staff Roles and Responsibilities Guide
  • Campaign Job Descriptions Guide
  • Campaign Staff Applicant Evaluation Rubric Template
  • Campaign Staff Interview Questions Worth Asking
  • Campaign Staff Hiring Pool Management Tool

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Nancy Leeds

Trainer

Nancy Leeds is a veteran political operative with over 15 years of experience. She has worked on Democratic campaigns everywhere from Minnesota to California to Arkansas. She is also the author of CampaignSick, a blog about best practices in electoral politics and campaign management. Nancy holds an MPA and Masters in Gender and Public Policy from Columbia University. She is an avid Washington Nationals baseball fan, baker, and seltzer-drinker. Although a proud New Yorker, she now lives in Washington, DC with her wonderful husband, Michael.